Optimising summer productivity for Hinds and Fawns

Over summer balancing the need to grow out fawns, while maintaining hind condition, to ensure a successful mating and early conception in the autumn is crucial for the deer industry. Key to these often-competing ambitions is the quality and quantity of pasture on-offer through the summer months.

Paul Sharp, SealesWinslow Consultant Nutritionist, is familiar with this scenario and well placed to offer advice. First of all, he suggests being prepared. “Planning ahead using a feed budget is the simplest way to gauge the quantity of pasture, crops, and supplements available and identify any summer shortfalls early,” explains Paul. The fundamentals

Getting the basics right sets you up for success. To achieve calf growth rates of 400g/day+ both the hinds and calves need: • 4–5 kg DM/day/hind of high-quality feed for hinds with red calves at foot. Hinds with

Wapiti calves should be allowed an additional 1–1.5 kg DM; • High quality feed > 10.5 MJ ME/kg; • Pasture offered > 2500 kg DM/ha, to ensure high intakes. Young calf growth rates are most influenced by the hind lactation and therefore how well hinds are fed. Live weight gain in un-weaned calves ranges from 220 to 700 g/day over January and February1 . What about poor-quality pasture?

Where pasture quality is poor, a summer feed deficit can be compounded. Firstly, the pasture delivers reduced energy (MJME/kgDM) and other nutrients, while secondly the hind and calf will in fact choose to eat less, thus further reducing vital intakes. “The culprit is the high fibre content of poor pasture,” says Paul “High fibre requires more chewing before the pasture can pass through the rumen. This all takes time, therefore reducing pasture intakes.” As fibre increases within pasture, the MJME and protein naturally decrease. Low protein can restrict milk production and by default reduce the nutrient supply for the calf, compromising growth rates. “When faced with low quality pasture, the recommendation is to target the specific nutrients to balance the diet.” When considering supplement types, factor in the energy (MJME), protein, and the minerals. Bringing it all together

When pasture or crop quantity is limited through summer, supplementary feed is a valuable tool to fill the dry matter gap and supply the essential nutrients needed to improve calf growth rates and hind condition. When determining the type of bulk supplement to incorporate, “It pays to calculate the cost of supplementary feed based on MJME and protein,” Paul suggests. “There’s more to it than the cost on weight alone.” It’s an important distinction as not all supplements are created equal interms of animal performance. High protein supplements can make all the difference when pasture protein is down. For low quality summer pasture one simple method to improve digestibility, is utilising SealesWinslow Forage Max blocks. The dehydrated molasses supplement, aids in helping rumen microbes extract the maximum nutrients from the grass. As well as providing a range of key nutrients and trace elements essential for optimum performance. “Forage Max can also boost microbe population, increasing the rate of digestion of high fibre feeds.” Subsequentially increasing the amount of pasture that can be consumed. Finally, any supplementary feed or crops being considered for the summer to help balance the diet or feed budget should be offered early. This enables the hinds and calves to become familiar with them and adapt to the change in diet. For more information talk to your local SealesWinslow Sales Representative or Ruralco Representative today.

1 DeerNZ www.deernz.org.nz